Five Steps
by swingdancer23
Summary: Village Square entry: Ellen, the old woman in Mineral Town, tells the story of her abusive marriage. Rated T for mild drug references.


**This is a Village Square entry for the topic The Story of Us. I know this is way different than the song, but hey, it works. **

**This is a songfic based off Five Steps by The Davenports. Look it up if you don't know it; it's really good, although short.**

**R&R please! **

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><p>The story of us? Well, there wasn't really much of one.<p>

It all started when we met; I was not yet sixteen. Back then, though, that was a normal age for courtship and marriage. We met at a church social in my uncle's barn; you played the fiddle and everyone danced around you. It was such a lovely night, and when you asked someone else to play just so you could ask me to dance, well, I was beyond flattered. We slow danced under the old barn roof, oblivious to all the others staring. Your smashing blue eyes sparkled in the dimly lit room as your rebelliously long brown hair hung around your face. You sweet-talked me all night long, and when we had to part ways, you asked what county I lived in. I told you, you smiled, and you told me you'd be there to win me over one day.

If anything, you were a man of your word. We courted for a year and were married soon after I turned seventeen.

But that's when everything fell apart.

_Veins swell__  
><em>_You know me, Ellen, enough to tell__  
><em>_Five steps, you're over._

Just a few months after we married, I noticed a big change in you. You became violent and your mouth turned to rubbish. You abused me verbally, physically, and emotionally. Refusing to work, I had to be the primary breadwinner in the household, working as a cook at the local restaurant. Somehow, though, all the earnings I collected ended up being spent, and we even went into debt.

Turns out it was drugs. You were taking them around the clock, day in and day out. It was easy to tell when you were under the influence; I knew you enough to tell.

You were addicted.

I kept telling myself that I didn't have to stay if things continued. But I loved you.

I was addicted.

_Quick cut__  
><em>_Make you're move deliberate__  
><em>_Five steps, you're over._

The day you attempted suicide still pains me to think about. To think you deliberately cut yourself in an attempt to end your life before your time is up baffles me. I'm just glad I was there to stop you; even to this day, I'd be devastated knowing something happened to you.

But after that attempt, your condition worsened, if that was even possible. I felt like I couldn't leave you because you'd try to end your life again. I didn't want that for you. I couldn't be a widow at eighteen, and you couldn't be dead at twenty. It just wasn't right.

So I stayed. 

_No reprimand__  
><em>_Deliberate demand__  
><em>_With your two feet at hand_

After three years of putting up and dealing with your addiction and abuse, I realized that with no consequences, you'd never get better. I didn't know where to go, so I went to a dear friend. She told me to give you an ultimatum; me or the drugs.

So I did.

_Get back__  
><em>_This train's a comin' down the track_

I stood at the train station, clutching my suitcase handle, ready to leave when I heard my name being called repeatedly.

"Ellen! Ellen!" your voice called, echoing all throughout the station.

I didn't turn around, but tears silently rolled down my face. I couldn't stay. It wasn't healthy for either you or me; you needed a consequence to get better, and I needed a healthy relationship.

You ran towards me, and then your hand rested on my shoulder. I could smell the drugs on your clothes, which made my decision even stronger.

"Ellen," you begged, "please don't leave…I'll give up drugs…I promise."

I turned to face you and looked into your sunken eyes. Your eyes had lost all sincerity, luster, and reflected the life you lived back then. How I wanted to believe you. But you'd promised me six times before, and I'd had enough.

The train conductor interrupted my thoughts, hollering, "All aboard!"

I took one final look in your eyes, kissed your cheek, and then whispered, "I can't."

Without looking back, I stepped on the train and took my seat, refusing to look out the window. I knew if I saw you again, I'd give in.

And then the train began rolling on its tracks; that was when I realized there was no turning back.

The story of us was over.

_Five steps, you're over._

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><p><strong>Did you guys like it? I really hope I did okay on this. Let me know :)<strong>


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